


The Business Man and the Boy

by Whilhelmina_Prince



Category: Rhett & Link
Genre: Alternate Universe, Explicit Sexual Content, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-12
Updated: 2016-10-06
Packaged: 2018-08-14 14:12:18
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 22,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8017114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Whilhelmina_Prince/pseuds/Whilhelmina_Prince
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rhett, the 30-year-old CEO of a multi-million dollar corporation, is in desperate need of a personal assistant to help organize his work and his life. He hires Link, a shy young college graduate with boyish good looks, but it won’t be long until their relationship becomes much more than a business arrangement.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The Business Man and the Boy was inspired by GMM 364 (Rhett & Link React to Kids React to Rhett & Link) in which one child is awed by the difference in their looks, stating that Rhett is dressed up like a business man, while Link looks like “a normal boy like me.”

Chapter 1

“Mr. McLaughlin, your final interview is here.” The secretary’s nasal voice crackled over the speakerphone. 

Rhett closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. He’d been interviewing candidates all day, but none of them were remotely suitable to be his personal assistant. Most of them had been ditzy girls in short skirts just looking to worm their way into his bed. And they were attractive, no doubt, but they weren’t what he was looking for in an assistant or a companion. 

Then there were the high-powered types in fancy suits. Rhett knew this breed. They were well-bred young men from rich families looking to make their own fortune. Becoming his personal assistant wasn’t their goal; it was making connections so they could move up. Some of them were likely there to try and snatch his company away from him. 

And no one stole from Rhett James McLaughlin.

“Send him in,” he snapped at the phone in his husky voice. He doubted that whoever walked through the door would walk out with a job.

After a moment, the large oak door opened just enough to let the tall, slender man slip through. He was tall, though not nearly as tall as 6’7” Rhett, but was dwarfed by the high ceilings of Rhett’s office. His shoulders were broad, but he held them curved in toward his chest, as if trying to protect himself from something.

Rhett examined the man, still standing by the door, waiting to be invited further in. He had dark, large-framed glasses and a mop of wavy black hair. He was wearing slim-cut grey pants and a black dress shirt that he wore untucked and without a tie, but buttoned all the way up. Slung over his shoulder was a worn leather messenger bag. This man was nothing like anyone Rhett had interviewed yet.

And while none of the earlier interviewees were the right person for the job, Rhett was certain that this unsure man was not it, either. He had no confidence and no pride in his appearance. 

“Well, sit down,” Rhett called across the expanse of the office. “Mr …”

“Neal,” the man replied in a soft voice. “Charles Neal. But everyone …”

“Mr. Neal. Right.” Rhett searched his desk for the correct resume as the man approached. A quick glance told him that the candidate before him had recently graduated from an unimpressive state school. 

The young man eased gingerly into the leather-backed chair, sitting stiffly on the very edge of the seat with his hands folded in his lap.

Rhett laid the resume back on his desk and steepled his hands in front of his chest. “I’m going to get right to it. You’re going to have to do something amazing to get this job, because it’s the end of the day, every interview has been terrible, and so far, I’m not impressed with you either. So tell me something that will make me want to hire you.”

The man’s eyes, a particularly clear shade of blue, Rhett noticed, darted around the room. He took the bag from his shoulder and stood. 

“May I rearrange your desk?”

“Excuse me?” Rhett’s eyebrow raised automatically. No one touched his desk. No one. It was an unwritten rule that everyone obeyed.

“Your desk,” the man responded, his voice wavering just a little. “I can make it better, more efficient.” 

Rhett leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. His lips moved to the left and he considered the idea. “You think this is what will get you hired?”

The man nodded, his hair bouncing wildly around his face.

It was the end of the day, and Rhett was beyond tired. Normally he would have quickly sent someone like this Charles Neal out the door immediately. But he didn’t have the energy to argue. And in truth, something about the request intrigued him. Most candidates tried to impress him with their Ivy league credentials or family connections, or their cleavage. None of it worked. But this man was different.

“Okay,” Rhett said. His chair rolled back and he stood and backed away, making room for the other man. “Have at it.”

“Really?”

“Not if you keep asking questions.”

“Right … okay.” The man’s eyes gave a quick twinkle and he bounded behind the desk. 

Rhett watched in amazement as the man quickly assessed the placement of the items on his desk and began to rearrange. Rhett couldn’t make much sense out of what he was doing, but was impressed by the speed at which he worked. 

After a few minutes, the man backed up and checked over his work. He ran his finger and thumb across a stubbled chin, and then turned to face Rhett. “Done,” he announced with a smile.

Rhett stepped toward the desk. There were far fewer items on the desk and it did look less cluttered, but he wasn’t sure what made this arrangement more efficient, as the man had promised. 

“You better be able to explain this,” he barked.

The man’s shoulders fell and his eyes looked like those of a kicked puppy. Rhett almost felt bad. But not quite. It would take more than a pair of pretty eyes to make him cave.

“Well,” he started, “I shifted a lot of things around and put a lot of things in your drawer. See, I figure a man in your position doesn’t actually do a lot of stapling and paperclipping and that sort of thing, right?”

Rhett nodded, unsure where this was going. 

“Your secretary, or assistant, or somebody who isn’t you does that. So you don’t really need some of this stuff. So the stapler, the tape, and the paper clips are all in the desk drawer. There if you need them, but not cluttering up the desk.”

Rhett didn’t say a word, but gestured for him to keep talking.

“I shifted your computer to an angle at the right. That way when you have meetings, nothing blocks your view of whoever is sitting across from you. And you have the left side of the desk to use for writing. I did it that way so that your writing arm isn’t hanging off the edge of the desk.”

“Hmm,” Rhett said. His facial expression, much of which was covered by his thick, but well-groomed beard, emoted nothing. “Is that it?”

The man shook his head. “Um, and I put all of your pens in the drawers, too. You don’t need a bunch of cheap pens sitting around in a cupholder. You need one pen, one good official looking pen, a power pen, ready to use at all times. Maybe something in a wooden casing? I think that would suit you. But we’ll have to get one for you.”

The man’s confidence built as he talked, as if he had forgotten to be nervous. He was gesturing with his hands, and a smiled crossed his face as he described the efficiency his changes would bring to Rhett’s life.

“I also put your desk calendar away because if you hire me, I’ll make sure every appointment is in your electronic calendar, and it’ll be synced to your computer, your phone, and any other mobile devices you need it synced to. I’ll keep it updated and you’ll never miss a meeting. So now there is nothing on your desk to distract you from the important things you have to do. And you can leave all the little details to me.”

By the time he finished talking, Rhett was actually impressed with the man. He was right that Rhett was too distracted by the little things. And the rest was all on point. He loved Link’s idea for a power pen. The feeling of wood in his hands was always a welcome one.

Rhett approached the man, towering over him, and took him by the chin, looking him over, inspecting him. The man’s blue eyes were scared, but Rhett saw something else there too. There was fear, yes, but also need. And not just for a job.

“Alright,” Rhett said, taking a step back. “I’m giving you a chance. One week. If I’m not happy with you after a week, you’re out. But you have to be prepared to work your ass off and do everything, and I mean everything, that I say.”

The man nodded. 

“Be here at 7 am Monday morning, and do not be late. I will be here by 7:30. When I get here, I want a cup of coffee on my desk with two creams and one sugar. I also want you to brief me on my appointments for the day. There will be more later, but for Monday, that will do. Is that understood, Mr …”

Rhett realized he had forgotten the man’s name. 

“It’s Charles Neal,” he said quietly. “But if you don’t mind, I prefer to be called Link.”

“Fine. Link,” Rhett replied. “But you will call me Mr. McLaughlin. Or sir.”

“Yes sir,” Link responded immediately, without a hint of irony. 

Rhett licked his lips. He liked the way the word “sir” rolled off the boyish Link’s tongue. He was beginning to get the feeling that this way going to work out just fine.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Rhett McLaughlin, the most powerful man in the city, grabbed Link’s chin and inspected him like he was a fatted calf being personally selected for the man’s dinner plate. Link froze, his eyes filled with terror, as he stared up at the tall bearded man. 

Mr. McLaughlin was a wonder to behold. Link had never met such a tall man, nor one so well dressed. His gray pin-striped suit was tailored exactly, accenting every perfect muscle in his body, and the royal blue shirt and white tie brought out the commanding steel of his eyes. 

Link had never been more intimidated. Or more turned on. 

But this wasn’t about his desires. This was about his desperate need for a job. 

He was shocked that he was given the chance. It was only a week. He knew he had to go far above and beyond what was asked of him if he had any chance of keeping the job. One week’s pay would help, but it wouldn’t be enough. 

Before he left, he memorized Mr. McLaughlin’s instructions to the letter. As he walked home along the cold city streets, his thoughts twisted and turned as he tried to figure out what might impress his new boss. Had already knew that his clothing would not do, but buying anything new was out of the question. Even if he did buy something good enough to work in the office of the richest man in the city, he would only have enough to purchase one outfit. He could dress to impress for a single day. But he had been hired in the clothes he preferred, so perhaps it would do. 

In any case, he barely had enough money to make it until he got paid again.

Still, a thought niggled at the back of his brain that wouldn’t escape him. He was almost sure that the final point that landed him the job was the idea of a power pen. He didn’t even think that was a real thing, but he had conjured the phrase on the spot, and it seemed to fit the strong, powerful man standing before him.

Mr. McLaughlin had seemed to stand a little straighter at the idea of holding such a pen. Perhaps, if Link could manage to find the perfect pen and have it on the desk and waiting, it would show just how valuable an employee he would be.

At the next corner, Link turned left instead of right toward his apartment. He didn’t truly want to go home yet anyway. He walked toward the shopping district, toward the many department stores where he might find such an item.

Mentally, he calculated how much he could possible spend. He didn’t have enough to buy anything worthy to sit upon the desk of Rhett McLaughlin. He knew that. But he forged on, praying that the right circumstances would fall into his lap, as this job had.

Link checked in several stores, but nothing was right. Many of them had lovely, shiny pen sets, some of them engravable. And many of them would have looked good on the desk. But Link knew that looking good wasn’t the same as looking right. And this needed to look exactly right.

He left the last store defeated, certain he would begin his first day of work with empty hands.

As he walked home, he held his arms around himself trying to keep warm. He didn’t have a jacket or a coat nice enough to wear to the interview, so he had gone without. He hadn’t planned to be out late enough into the evening that it would matter, but now he was shivering in the wind. 

He was only a few blocks from home when he spotted a store he had never noticed before. It was a quaint boutique, the type of which there were many in the city, but he rarely frequented such locations. He could hardly afford the luxury of the specialty items sold there. But on that particular night, he knew he had nothing to lose.

“What the hell?” he said aloud as he crossed the empty street toward the shop. The sign above it declared “Earthly Beauty: Nature’s Decor”. The window featured sturdy but beautifully carved furniture and other items. If any store had what Link was looking for, this was it. He wondered, though, how it had never noticed it before. 

Perhaps, he thought, it was because he had never gone looking for it.

A bell jingled as he entered, and the oaky smell immediately hit him. It was masculine and strong, bringing immediately to mind the tall trees he used climb in as a child. It also reminded him of his new boss, tall and powerful like a tree.

An older woman in a colorful flowing skirt approached him.

“What can I help you find, young man?” she asked in a cheerful voice.

Link’s first instinct was to say that he was just looking, that he didn’t need anything. He hated asking for help, knowing that he would likely walk out with nothing. It always made him leave with a pit of guilt in his stomach.

But he was tired, and he could tell that in the cluttered, cozy store, he would never find what he was looking for on his own.

“A pen,” he said. “A desk pen. Something elegant, but strong, powerful. Masculine.”

The woman raised an eyebrow. “A gift?”

“How did you know?”

The woman nodded and tapped her index finger on the side of her nose. Link waited for her to explain but she said nothing. “Come with me,” she said, and led him toward the back of the store.

On the back wall was a surprisingly large selection of exactly the sort of thing Link was looking for. The woman scanned over the display and immediately picked one up. 

“Here, see what you think,” she said, holding it out to him. 

The pen laid flat inside the curve of a flat, rectangular box. The pen itself was thick, and Link could easily imagine it in the hands of Mr. McLaughlin. But as he thought it over, the pen was too short for the man’s large hands. It would look clumsy and awkward. And it was ball point, which might have been fine, but not for his new boss. Worst of all, it would lay flat on the desk. This was not the image he wanted for his new boss at all.

“Not quite,” he said, handing it back. 

“Hmm,” the woman said, scanning again, longer this time, and then exclaimed, “Ah! This is the one.”

She gestured to, but did not pick up the pen. This pen stood tall and erect in an elegant base. If he didn’t already know what he was looking at, Link would have thought it was one piece, a sculpture of some kind, because of how well the pen and the holder fit together. He reached up and removed the pen.

The fountain pen had a long, thick shaft that instantly felt right to Link. He could actually feel the wood grain under the pads of his fingers. He held the tip in one hand and allowed the other to glide upward. Eyes closed, he imagined the pen in the hands of Rhett McLaughlin, sitting behind his desk, his strong hands wrapped around the wooden pen.

His eyes snapped open, as he realized he was about to lose himself in his own fantasy.

“It’s perfect,” he muttered. 

“Let me go wrap it up for you,” the woman said, delicately taking the pen and replacing it into the holder.

Link felt his face get hot. “Wait,” he said, and he picked up the holder to look at the tag tied around its base.

“Goodness,” he whispered. “I don’t know if I can …”

“Nonsense. You said it was perfect, and it is, so if you just follow me.”

She took the pen and the base and walked quickly to the register, leaving Link staring open mouthed back at her. Again, he calculated in his mind. He didn’t have enough cash or enough in his bank account. Even combined, it wasn’t enough. 

He trudged to the register, wishing he could escape out a backdoor unnoticed. 

“I’m sorry,” he began as he approached. “I should have said I was just looking.”

The woman continued on as if she hadn’t heard him. “You’re in luck!” she announced in a sing-song voice. “It’s coupon day!”

“But I don’t have a coupon.”

“Not a problem.” The woman bent down as if to pick something up, and he could see her scribbling with her right hand. “Here you are!” she said.

She handed Link a yellow sticky note upon which she had written “75% off! Today only!”

“I don’t understand.”

Again, the woman nodded and tapped the side of her nose. “Would you like this gift wrapped?”

Link shook his head. He planned to have it ready and waiting on the desk. 

“Right.” She carefully wrapped the pen in brown paper and placed it gingerly in a small shopping bag. Link paid her, and the woman in the color skirt shooed him off into the night.

After walking a few more blocks, Link unlocked the bottom door to his apartment building and took the stairs to the second floor. The lights in the hallway were flickering on and off, giving a yellowish cast to the dingy walls. 

He looked back and forth before unlocking his door, making sure no one was lurking around a corner. He quickly dived inside and turned the lock. He then slide over the deadbolt and the chain lock.

Turning on the lights, he surveyed his domicile. On his left was the tiny but tidy kitchen, and to his right, the combined bedroom and living room. There stood his metal framed twin bed, a worn but clean chair, and a small television. The bed was made and that morning’s newspaper was neatly folded on the small table next to the chair. He had been too nervous to read it that morning as he drank his coffee.

He took off his shoes and slid them under the bed. 

Maybe, if things worked out, he could get a nicer place. It didn’t need to be bigger. But a place where he wasn’t afraid every time he opened the door would be nice. A place where he wasn’t kept awake at night by screaming matches from above or gunshots from the street.

But if things didn’t work out, he might be out on those streets in a week.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Rhett worked late into the night, taking phone calls and attempting to answer emails. But every time he looked at his inbox, there were more messages there than when he started. It was a never ending stream. Everyone needed him to provide guidance, answer a question, or solve a problem. But Rhett didn’t have answers for them.

The truth was that the company was crumbling. On paper, things were still okay, but not for long. There was money coming in. Plenty of it. But something was about to give out. Rhett could feel it. Departments were in turmoil. Negotiations with vendors and manufacturers were breaking down. Buyers were starting to turn elsewhere.

And everyone was looking to Rhett to fix it. But Rhett had no idea what to do. He’d built this company on the strength of his sweeping vision, but he had no idea how to manage the tiny details that kept things going. 

Rhett was the idea man. He had people to execute those ideas. They worked out the details, but it was always his idea, his yes or no on a final design. He controlled the entire company.

Now, nobody had the balls to make a single decision with his approval. At first, Rhett had reveled in that power. He wore it like a suit. He was Rhett James McLaughlin, CEO, millionaire, powerplayer. 

But lately he just wanted to wear an old comfortable pair of jeans and a faded t-shirt. He wanted to be Rhett, average man. 

He couldn’t let go of the control, though. Part of him wanted to. The company was too big for one man to micromanage everything. But if he delegated, he would lose some of that control. He would be seen as weak. And he could not allow that to happen.

He had begun the search for an assistant just to take off a little of the pressure. Someone to answer some phone calls and help keep his schedule straight. 

But this man, this Link, who had come into his office like a nervous squirrel, carried with him a promise of more than that. In just two minutes, Link created a more efficient workspace. That didn’t seem like much, but Rhett with his vision saw that it was just the beginning of what Link might be capable of.

He couldn’t let on, but Rhett already hoped that Link would become less of an assistant, and more of a partner. He wouldn’t just be an extra secretary, there to help take the edge off. He would be right there in the thick of everything, side by side with Rhett. As long as he understood his place. But Link’s quiet demeanor told Rhett that didn’t have to worry about Link making any power plays.

Monday couldn’t some soon enough, he thought as he stared at his inbox, the number of unread messages climbing even higher. He pictured Link standing next to his desk, listing off his appointments for the day, bringing him fresh coffee. He chewed on his bottom lip as he imagined Link bent over the desk to help him with something on his computer. 

“Get it together,” he told himself as he felt the discomfort growing in his loins.. 

He wasn’t going to get anything else done, he realized, so he shut down the computer and notified his driver that he was ready to go home. It was a silly thing, having a driver. He had cars. He could drive. But it was expected that he would have people to do these things for him, so he did. It was all about the image. 

After drifting in and out of a fitful doze on the way home. Rhett loosened his tied and collapsed onto the couch of the penthouse apartment he owned and resented. It was cold and sterile, with white walls and black leather furniture. It was more like a display room than a home. 

He turned on the TV to find something to distract him, but every show seemed too loud and overstimulating or just too insipid. He shut it off and went to the bar. He pulled out a glass, but ultimately couldn’t be bothered to pour, so he drank the expensive whiskey straight from the bottle. 

When he began to feel the buzz, he put the bottle away. It was just enough to help him get to sleep, enough to turn his brain off for at least a few hours. 

Partly from the alcohol and partly from exhaustion, Rhett stumbled toward his bedroom. He kicked his shoes to a corner of the room and began to undress, leaving his suit in a heap on the floor next to his bed.

He laid down on top of the covers, dressed only in underwear, but sleep would not come. He couldn’t stop seeing his inbox, mentally composing replies to emails he hadn’t read but knew were there. But that was better than the unrelenting thoughts of his new assistant. 

“Stop it!” he yelled to himself. But it was no use. All he could see when he tried to sleep were the clear, blue eyes of the timid man he had hired. All he could think about was how much he had wanted to touch the soft, quivering lips that had been so close to his own.

No one knew. If they did, would be all over the tabloids. He reputation would be ruined. He made it a point to be seen and photographed with beautiful women. There was an endless stream of pictures on the internet of him at dinner with women, kissing women, and some even a bit steamier. 

But all of it was an act. None of those women knew that, of course, but that’s why he rarely saw any one woman more than once or twice. It had gotten him the reputation of a player and a womanizer, but to the people who mattered, that was okay. It was a good thing, even. 

His true proclivity would remain a secret. 

Unfortunately, it was not a secret to him, and sleep was never going to come if he didn’t relieve the pressure. He forced himself to relax and pictured those eyes again, and those lips. He imagined his hands on the slope of the man’s shoulders, and replayed the way Link had said “Yes, sir.”

Rhett groaned as he brought himself to a satisfactory but underwhelming climax. It would have to do, because it was all he was going to get.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Link made it to the office at 6:30, half an hour earlier than Mr. McLaughlin had instructed him. He had a lot to do, and half an hour might not be enough time. Luckily, he’d been issued a key card to the building and a key to Mr. McLaughlin’s office. No one else had that key, according to his new boss. 

The weight of the trust that had been put in him weighed heavily on Link’s shoulders. 

The first thing he did was place the new pen on the desk. The desk was oak, dark and stately with clean lines. The pen was a lighter color and its appearance more natural and rustic, but it somehow worked perfectly. 

The job he had done rearranging the other items had been sloppy. Some of the angles were wrong and the spacing was uneven. But he had been in a rush and nerves had gotten the best of him. It had impressed Mr. McLaughlin nonetheless, but Link wasn’t happy. 

He spent at least 15 minutes at eye level with the desk, moving each item a millimeter to the left, then back to the right, and again, until everything was perfect. Then he dusted around each item with a cleaning cloth he had brought from home and took another five minutes resetting the things he had disturbed. 

The coffee pot was discretely hidden behind a cabinet built into the wall. Link opened the doors and began the process. He knew if he started the coffee now, it would be perfect drinking temperature by the time Mr. McLaughlin arrived. He made sure each scoop of coffee grounds was perfectly level before delicately pouring it into the basket, and then went in search of water. A second cabinet concealed a sink and two matching black mugs. He filled the pot exactly to the 4 cup line, as he assumed that his boss was a two-cup man. 

Once the coffee was busy percolating, Link began his next task. He retrieved Mr. McLaughlin’s calendar from the desk drawer and began to review the day. Appointments were written across every block, the handwriting large and sloppy, crossing into other time blocks. Some were written in black ink and some in blue, and one was written in red.

“Oh no, this won’t do at all,” Link muttered to himself. He had promised to convert everything into an electronic calendar, but he hadn’t planned to do it just yet. But just looking at the calendar was making him twitch.

Link opened the left desk drawer, and unsurprisingly, he found a sticky note there with several seemingly nonsensical combinations of letters and numbers written on it. They had to be passwords. He booted up the computer, a desktop model, which did surprise him. Surely a laptop would be more convenient and portable. This was a technology company, afterall. Link had read up on the company after landing the interview. McLaughlin Technologies had started in software, pioneers in video editing programs, and had since expanded to every kind of software and mobile app you could imagine, as well has the hardware that supported those programs. It was odd that the CEO would have a desktop computer in an age when everything kept getting smaller. 

When the log-in screen appeared, Link tried the first password and was instantly able to access Mr. McLaughlin’s computer. Link’s hands shook as he considered the risk he was taking. But he pressed on. A risk had landed him this job. Perhaps this risk would help him keep it.

Link quickly found the machine’s default calendar program and began inputting the information from the paper calendar. The program was already set up to synch to Mr. McLaughlin’s cell phone. Strange that he hadn’t already done this.

When he was finished, Link quickly synced the calendar to his own phone as well. Another risk, but it would allow him to easily access the information and keep his boss on track. 

Link looked at his watch. It was 7:25. He quickly headed back to the cabinet and took out one of the black mugs. They were clean at least. He poured a cup and prepared it exactly as request: two creams, one sugar.

Link placed the mug on the desk, in the spot where he guessed his boss’s arm would easily reach it. It was difficult, as the man had unnaturally long arms. As he gently set down the coffee, he wished he had thought to purchase a coaster as well. But he still had the cleaning clothing in his pocket. When the mug was empty, he would simply whisk it away and wipe the desk clean of any residue. 

The door to the office creaked open just as Link had set down the mug. He took two steps back, unsure where he should stand. He arranged himself so that he was behind the desk, but unobtrusively off to the side, a perfect 45 degree angle from where his boss would be sitting. 

Mr. McLaughlin walked in, his stride impossibly long. He seemed to take up the entire room. But he didn’t look at or acknowledge Link at all. Link hadn’t been smiling, but he felt the corners of his mouth descend. He had hoped to hear some words of praise for his work. 

The CEO made his way quickly to the desk and stowed his briefcase under the desk as he settled in. He reached for the mug, and Link gave himself an imaginary pat on the back as he boss’s arm seemed to naturally move toward the exact spot he had chosen to place the mug. 

But then he noticed the computer. Mr. McLaughlin spun around in the chair and locked eyes with a stunned Link. “I didn’t ask you to turn on my computer.” His voice was low and sharp.

Link clasped his hands in front of him to hide their shaking. “I’m very sorry, sir,” he stammered. “I found your password in your desk drawer. I input your schedule, at least for today, into your electronic calendar. It should be synced to your phone already. But I’d be happy to review it with you.”

Mr. McLaughlin glared. 

“Sir,” Link added.

His boss turned his chair slowly back toward the desk. He picked up the coffee and took a sip. Link held his breath.

“What’s my first appointment?”

It wasn’t praise, but he wasn’t being scolded. Link got out his one phone and began to go through the schedule. It was a busy day, with very little room for any down time. From what Link had gathered from the planner, most days were much the same. That might explain the faint circles under Mr. McLaughlin’s eyes.

As he finished reviewing the day, Link remembered that he hadn’t mentioned syncing the schedule to his own phone. 

Mr. McLaughlin took another sip of coffee and then set it down roughly. A drop of the brown liquid sprayed up and out of the mug, landing on the otherwise pristine desk.

Link stood completely still as he boss circled him. He could feel the stoney grey eyes looking him up and down. He had screwed up. He knew it. He going to get fired on the first day. His mind began to whirl. He would have to move out. But where would he go? There was no where left for him, and he was out of money.

Mr. McLaughlin stopped in front of him, their faces mere inches apart. But Link kept his eyes on his shoes, unwilling, or unable, to look his boss in the eyes. 

“I’m not sure I like this look you have going,” the tall man said. 

Link looked up. “I’m … I’m sorry … what?”

Link had dressed in his best pants, the same gray slacks he had worn to the interview, but had selected a dark purple dress shirt and a dark gray sweater vest. 

“The sweater vest. I don’t like it. Take it off.”

Link’s eyes were wide and unblinking. He didn’t move.

“I told you to be ready to do whatever I asked. I don’t like the vest. Take it off.”

Link felt as if he’d drifted into an alternate universe. Was this really happening? But his boss looked so stern, so commanding, that he followed the order. Just as he lifted the vest over his head, Mr. McLaughlin snatched the vest from Link’s hands and tossed it like a basketball into the wastebasket. 

“No more vests,” he said. “It hides you.” 

Link thought he saw a hint of pink in the man’s cheeks, but he didn’t dare to look hard enough to tell for sure. 

“And this button has to go.”

Mr. McLaughlin reached up and pulled so hard on the top button of Link’s shirt that it pulled off the shirt entirely, flying through the air and landing on the floor. The sound of the button bouncing across the hardwood seemed to echo forever. After pausing a beat, he undid the second button, more gently this time, leaving the V of Link’s chest exposed. 

“That’s better,” he said. This time, Link was certain he saw red on his boss’s cheeks. But he felt that same flush himself. In undoing the button, Mr. McLaughlin’s fingers had lightly brushed the sink of Link’s chest.

It had been such a long time since anyone had touched him. Anyone at all. 

Just then, Mr. McLaughlin cleared his throat and took a step back. “Nice work on the coffee,” he said. And then he sat down at the computer and opened his email. 

It wasn’t until lunchtime that they spoke again. Mr. McLaughlin sat through a series of meetings at his desk, during which Link stood in what he now considered his designated spot. He refilled the coffee cup each time it was empty, just for something to do. He thought he should be taking notes or doing some other more useful task, but so far, he seemed to exist as an invisible waiter and nothing more.

When the 11:30 meeting ended at noon, Link finally dared to speak. “You don’t have anything scheduled for the next hour. Sir.” 

He nodded, but didn’t turn to acknowledge Link. “My driver will be waiting. We’re going to lunch.”

“We? Sir?”

“Yes, we. You’re my assistant. You go where I go.” 

Mr. McLaughlin turned to pick up the telephone but paused. Link’s heart skipped a beat as he saw his boss’s eyes stop on the pen. He picked it up, his long thick fingers running down the length of the pen, just as Link’s had in the store. 

“Did you buy this?”

Link nodded, which he realized was stupid, as his boss couldn’t see him. “Yes, sir.” He wanted to say something else, but he didn’t have the words. Any words he did have would likely not convey what he wanted to say, anyway. At least not what was appropriate to say. 

Mr. McLaughlin took out a legal pad and used the pen to sign his name in harsh strokes. Link watched the hand move in large motions across the page, noticing how the veins popped out from the back of his boss’s hand as he held the pen with a strong grasp.

“Hmm,” his boss said, and nothing more. He replaced the pen in the holder, but left the legal pad on the desk. 

“Do you like it? Sir?” Link’s voice was hesitant, almost squeaking.

Mr. McLaughlin stood again, and for a moment, Link didn’t think he was going to get an answer. But his boss took one large step toward him and in a split second closed the space between them. He leaned down until Link could feel his boss’s hot breath on his ear. 

Mr. McLaughlin’s voice came out in a raspy whisper that was nearly a growl. “It’s perfect.”


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

“It’s perfect,” Rhett growled softly into his new assistant’s ear. He watched as the hair on the back of Link’s neck stood up. Link shuddered. 

Rhett smiled; this was a new kind of power.

He stepped back, returning his face to normal. The pen was indeed, perfect. The natural lines and the grain of the wood gave him a sense of serenity he found nowhere else in his life. But when he held it in his hand, he imagined holding something else, something quite a bit more personal. He wondered if that was what Link intended. Part of him hoped so. Part of him begged for it not to be true. But when he whispered to Link, standing so close to him, it was all he could think about.

Rhett called his driver himself. Link was still recovering, his mouth in a thin line, betrayed by the pink rising along his high cheekbones. 

The pair took the elevator downstairs. Link hurried to open the door of the sleek black car, allowing Rhett to slide in. Link darted behind the car and slid in on the other side. Rhett noticed that he sat close to the door, putting as much space between them as possible. He was hunched over slightly and crossed his legs toward the car door.

Rhett, on the other hand, spread his legs wide, his long legs taking up more than his half of the back seat.

Link was staring straight ahead, and Rhett took the opportunity to examine the young man sitting beside him. The shirt, open at the collar, fit his slender frame well, and his adjustment showed off just a hint of dark hair. It was soft, Rhett knew, as his fingers had just brushed across the pale chest when he’d removed the top button. But the warm skin had heated Rhett to the core. 

But now that he had seen him closer, Rhett noticed that the rectangular glasses disguised the dark circles under Link’s large eyes. His cheeks were sunken, and his skin just a shade too pale. He looked … tired. 

Something they had in common, Rhett thought. 

He wondered what it was that kept Link up at night. His resume revealed nothing. And he hadn’t asked him any questions during the interview. In fact, he hardly knew anything about this man at all, and he had already entrusted him with more than anyone else in his life. There was something about him that made Rhett certain that Link was trustworthy. But still, he wanted to know more about him.

When the car stopped, Link practically lept from the car and made his way to the other side, opening the door for Rhett. Rhett exited, nodding briefly to Link. 

The restaurant was a small cafe in a part of town far from Rhett’s office, and even at this time of day, it was sparsely populated. There were a few older men sipping coffee outside, and one or two couples dining inside. 

Rhett entered, almost ducking through the door, Link following close at his heels, like a loyal puppy dog. Rhett felt the corner of his mouth tug upward at the thought.

Without waiting to be seated, Rhett led Link to a tiny round table in the furthest corner of the cafe. Rhett sat in the corner, leaving Link a seat to the side of him. Link settled in like a nervous cat. Their knees bumped together, sending Rhett’s imagination flying.

Link’s eyes darted around, taking in the details of the room. The walls were a light warm brown, the tables and chairs wooden but mismatched, and the walls heavily decorated with sketches of animals, trees, and waterfalls.

Rhett took the confusion in Link’s eyes as an opportunity to start a conversation. He wanted to learn something about this man, and it was as good of a start as any.

“Not what you expected?” he asked.

Link shook his head. “Do you come here often, Mr. McLaughlin?” 

“Almost every day.”

“Huh.”

Rhett waited, but Link said no more. He was disappointed, but the waitress, a woman in her 50s, appeared at the table. 

“The usual?” she asked, giving Rhett a big smile.

“You know me, Julie,” he said, smiling. “But my friend here might need a menu.”

Link looked up, his hair flopping around his face. “Oh, I’m just his assistant,” he said, stumbling over the words. “I don’t need to …”

Rhett frowned. “Take the menu, Link.” Rhett took it from Julie’s hands and spread it open on the table. 

“No, really, sir,” Link said, worry filling his eyes. “Just water for me, please.”

“He’ll have what I’m having,” Rhett said, snapping the menu shut and handing it back. Link pulled his hands back to his lap, and Rhett saw the man’s shoulders tense.

“It’ll just be a few minutes,” Julie said, taking the menu.

When they were alone again, Rhett reached across the table and tapped Link’s chin upward. “You have to eat,” he said, staring him down. 

“I ..” 

Rhett’s eyes narrowed as he watched his assistant struggle for words. “You don’t have some kind of food allergy, do you? Or …” His words trailed off as he realized he was about to ask Link if he had an eating disorder. He was a commanding man, but he wasn’t entirely insensitive. Not in private, anyway. 

Link shook his head vigorously. “No, no, it’s not that. I just ... I didn’t expect …”

And Rhett realized what the problem was. He nodded and folded his hands on the table. “Link,” he said, in a strong voice that forced Link to meet his eyes. “This is a work lunch. It’s covered.”

Rhett watched Link release a breath, and his shoulders fell, relaxing around him. Rhett felt the tension between them melt, just for a moment. 

“So, why do you come here?” Link asked.

Rhett allowed a hint of a smile to cross his face. “It’s quiet. Private. Nobody bothers me here.”

Link cocked his head to the side, not understanding.

The truth was, he didn’t have to be Rhett James McLaughlin here. He could just be Rhett. And he wanted to tell Link that. But the words stuck on the end of his tongue. He was the boss. And whatever other feelings were bubbling up inside him, he had to maintain that.

“I just like it,” he said, his voice returning to the deeper, gruffer voice. 

In moments, Julie returned to the table. In front of each man, she placed a plate with a simple hamburger and french fries. Again, Rhett saw the confusion in Link’s eyes. But he didn’t give him a chance to ask. He dug into the burger, taking large bites, and watched as Link took smaller, neater bites, using a napkin frequently to blot his mouth. It was cute, in a strange way, Rhett thought.

As they finished, Rhett decided to take the conversation a different route. “We need to talk more about your role as my assistant,” he said. 

Link nodded, wiping his hands on the napkin. 

“I need you do to more than just answer the phones and all that kind of thing. A secretary could do that. You’re going to be my right hand man.”

“Me?” Link’s voice squeaked.

Rhett nodded, pushing his plate to the side. “So I need you at my side all the time. Morning to night. Evenings, sometimes. Lunches, dinners, whatever. Can you commit to that?”

“Yes,” Link stammered. “Of course.”

“Good. I want to you learn everything, absorb everything. You’ll be my … advisor, of sorts.”

“But sir, I don’t know anything about …”

“That doesn’t matter,” Rhett interrupted. “You have a sense of order, how things should be. When you sense something is off, your job is to tell me. Immediately.”

Link swallowed hard. His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down, mesmerizing Rhett for a moment. “I don’t know …”

“This is the job,” Rhett said, his hand landing on the table in a fist. The sound it made was louder than Rhett intended. “You’re in, or you’re out.”

Link nodded furiously. “In. I’m in. Of course. Sir.”

Rhett pulled several bills from his wallet, leaving far more on the table than necessary. The cafe was inexpensive, and he suspected the waitress didn’t make much money, especially on these slow weekdays. He knew nothing about her but her name, and he hoped the money made a difference for her.

He noticed Link watching, his eyes large. But he wouldn’t explain himself. He couldn’t appear weak. Or compassionate. The industry was ruthless. And he had to be ruthless as well.

The rest of the day passed much as the morning. Link remained by Rhett’s side, as requested, but did not yet do much more than observe. But Rhett could practically hear the wheel’s turning in Link’s mind. He was listening, learning, and taking in everything. It wouldn’t be long before he had himself a reliable partner.

The difficult part was keeping his eyes off his assistant. He was distracted during all his meetings. He couldn’t help it. Link’s lean frame and slim waist was exactly his type. But it was those eyes, those big blue knowing eyes, that captivated him. He wanted to know what secrets were buried behind those eyes.

All afternoon, Rhett wanted nothing more than to escape to the bathroom to take care of himself, but there was no time. 

What Link did manage to do was keep him on schedule, so the day ended far sooner than it normally did. As each meeting came near to its allotted time, Link would tap a long finger on the desk, and Rhett would quickly wrap things up. It was a small thing, but when the day ended at 6:30, Rhett was truly grateful. He had even been able to catch up on some of his emails.

“Will there be anything else, sir?” Link asked. 

“No, we’re done for the day,” Rhett said, shutting down the computer. 

“I’ll just get going then.” He started to walk out of the office, but Rhett stopped him, not wanting the day to be over just yet.

“Wait,” he called, almost desperately, but not quite. “My driver can take you home.”

Link’s cheeks flushed redder than they had at any point during the day. “Oh, no, that’s not necessary. I can walk.”

Rhett stood. “I insist. I’m leaving, too. It’s not a problem at all.”

“But …”

“No buts,” Rhett insisted. Link didn’t argue further. 

They took the elevator down and again, got into the car with Link opening doors for Rhett. Link gave his address to the driver quietly, and Rhett couldn’t quite hear him. 

When the car pulled up to Link’s building, Rhett’s jaw dropped in shock. The building was practically falling down. Some of the windows were boarded up and all of them were barred. That shouldn’t have been a surprise, based on the location. The street was narrow and many of the street lights were burned out. A man in an oversized coat holding a brown bad had strewn himself over the front steps of the building.

“This is where you live?”

Link flushed again. 

“I’m walking you upstairs.”

“No, that’s not necessary.”

“It is! This neighborhood is dangerous! Do you know how many murders take place around here?” 

Link nodded grimly. Of course he knew, Rhett thought. How could he not? The picture he had of his new assistant began to take on color. He didn’t know how he had landed in this place, but he obviously had no money and no resources. The circles under his eyes were the result of living in a place where you couldn’t feel safe, not to mention the worry of not knowing what bills you could pay each month. 

“I’m walking you upstairs,” Rhett insisted again, and Link went silent. 

Now Rhett just felt guilty. Link obviously needed the job. If this was where he was living, he was desperate. Anything Link did was to make sure he kept the job. It was the only reason he agreed to anything Rhett asked. His stomach churned at the thought. 

Still, he followed Link past the wino on the stairs and into the building. They climbed the stairs in silence, both of them careful not to touch the stained walls. It was so loud in the hallway, voices streaming from behind every door, that he could barely focus. It was no wonder Link looked like he hadn’t slept in weeks. 

“This is me,” Link said, stopping in front of a door near the end of the hallway. 

Rhett felt a strange feeling surge through his body. He couldn’t understand it; it was completely foreign to him. But he opened his mouth and let instinct take over.

“I don’t want you to stay here,” he blurted out.

Link stared blankly at him, his eyes boring holes in Rhett’s soul. “This is where I live,” he said, after what felt like the world’s longest silence. 

“But … it’s not safe here. You can’t … you can’t sleep here.” Rhett was trying to come up with a reason, something that made sense, but words wouldn’t come.

“Sir,” Link began, taking a deep breath. “This is my apartment. This is where I’ve lived for quite some time. I don’t have anywhere else to go.”

“You can … you can stay with me.”

Link said nothing and continued to stare at Rhett. But Rhett was out of words, too. He felt a need to protect Link, to keep him safe, to keep him close. It was absurd. They had just met. 

Yet, there was something electric in the air. Something he couldn’t deny.

Before he knew what was happening, Rhett pushed his body against Link’s, forcing the smaller man back into the door of the apartment. He kissed him hard and drove his tongue into Link’s mouth, which was soft and tasted of peppermint. He felt Link’s muscles tense for a moment, and then relax into him, their bodies curving into each other like two pieces of a puzzle.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

When Mr. McLaughlin’s lips crashed into his, Link’s instinct was to push him away. He almost did push him away, but his body reacted against his will. His muscles relaxed and he let his boss crush him against the door, allowing their hips to connect. 

It had been so long. He couldn’t help but give in.

The kiss broke, but their bodies remained in place. In a breathless whisper, he heard the question. “Do you want this?”

Link twitched, his body jerking with need. But his mouth was frozen. He couldn’t answer. He fumbled in his pocket for his keys and found just enough space to turn his body around and started to unlock the door. 

But his boss was unrelenting. Link felt the hard shaft of his boss’s desire press against his backside. He almost dropped the keys as he body turned to jelly. He felt hot breath on his neck. “You have to say it. I’ll leave if you want me to. So tell me. Do you want this?” 

Link gulped as he finally turned the key. “God, yes,” he whispered.

The door opened and the pair stumbled into the tiny apartment. Strong hands whirled him around and Link was now pressed into the door from the other side. His boss’s hands were on his hips, untucking his shirt. The feel of his huge, warm hands on such a sensitive area of his body made the hair on this back of Link’s neck stand up.

In a moment, the shirt was gone, and he felt lips on the back of his neck, starting in the soft indentation behind his ear, trailing down his neck in lustful kisses that bordered on bites. Link groaned as the bristles of Mr. McLaughlin’s beard tickled him at the top of his shoulder. 

Link turned himself around to face his boss. He had to look up, dwarfed by the powerful man. “Sir ..” he began.

His big hands flew to Link’s face, forcing him to look into his boss’s eyes. “Call me Rhett.”

“Rhett,” he started. But again, his words were lost somewhere between his brain and his mouth. 

A pained look crossed Rhett’s eyes. A centimeter of space appeared between their bodies. “Do you want to stop?”

God, no, he didn’t want to stop. His mind, his body, his soul, was telling him to let this happen. He deserved a little happiness, didn’t he? Even if it only lasted a few minutes. 

But some stupid part of his brain, that part that wouldn’t let him be happy, was yelling louder than any of the other voices. In a few seconds, he had already analyzed the worst case scenarios. If he let his happen, his could lose his job. If he made Rhett leave, he could lose his job. 

The absolute worse case, though, was that if he let it happen, he might fall for Rhett, and ultimately have his heart broken. He couldn’t let that happen. He should never have allowed things to get as far as they had. 

But at the last minute, his body’s needs took over.

“No,” he said in a firm voice, and Rhett’s mouth was on his again. He heard his zipper being undone, and Rhett was pushing him further into the apartment and onto the tiny twin-sized bed. 

Link watched as Rhett quickly shook out of his jacket and took off his shirt and tie. His boss’s bare chest was a sight. His muscles were strong and defined, but that chest, currently heaving with excited breath, also looked as if you could lay your head on it for the most comfortable sleep of your life. 

Link unconsciously licked his lips. He reached forward and grabbed Rhett’s hips and pulled him down so that Link was on his back with Rhett straddling him. The man’s frame was enormous and his limbs impossibly long. Link was not a big man, but he was tall. It was rare that he had ever felt so small with another man. But Rhett, with his power and his size, made him feel vulnerable.

Link had never felt so exhilarated.

Rhett leaned in and kissed Link again, exploring his mouth more slowly, his tongue moving in sensual circles and figure eights. Link wrapped his legs around him and pulled Rhett in closer, his body begging for contact. Their chests collided and Link inhaled sharply. Just the touch of skin against skin sent him into near ecstasy. 

Rhett fumbled with Link’s pants, and soon they were on the floor next to the bed. Link undid Rhett’s belt, but Rhett had to stand for the rest. Link sat up and slowly undid the button and then the zipper, letting the moment build, and then pulled pants and underwear to the floor in a swift motion.

Link was in awe. Rhett was beautiful, from his head to his feet and everything in between. He was a perfect man, perfectly proportioned. And Link wanted every inch of it.

Rhett, too, looked awed, but Link didn’t know why. He was too skinny, too geeky, too self-conscious. But the look in Rhett’s eyes made those feelings disappear. 

Link used his hands to pull Rhett in by the hips. He opened his mouth and took Rhett in slowly. The sound that emerged from Rhett’s throat was guttural, like nothing Link had ever heard. Link turned his eyes upward, but Rhett was staring at the ceiling, breathing heavily. 

Link continued, using his tongue, exploring Rhett’s length, dancing gently on the tip, and then diving back in fully. Soon, he felt Rhett’s hand’s on his head, pushing urgently. 

“Now,” Rhett said in a low growl. 

Link wrapped one hand around the base of Rhett’s shaft, but didn’t have to do anything else. Rhett began to thrust in his own rhythm, dominating Link, using him, taking what he needed. 

And Link loved every second of it.

Rhett came in an explosion, the force nearly knocking Link back. It would have, had it not been for the death grip Rhett had on his head. He swallowed as Rhett continued to rock his hips, moaning with pleasure.

When Rhett relaxed, Link pulled away. He was harder than ever, desperate for Rhett to make the next move.

Rhett seemed to wobble in place, and Link pulled him down the the bed so they sat side by side. Rhett sat with his legs spread wide and rested his elbows on his knees, his head drooping.

Link felt a vague sense of pride, knowing he had brought this powerful man practically to his knees. 

But the moment was ruined when Rhett’s cell phone vibrated against the floor where it had fallen from his pants pocket.

Rhett reached for it and answered it. 

“Rhett McLaughlin,” he said in his office voice. “Yes. Yes, of course.”

He hung up, and began to get dressed, almost as if he had forgotten Link was there. When he was fully dressed, he looked over where Link sat, feeling small, naked, and unimportant.

“Business,” Rhett said, finally, after staring at Link for a long silent moment. “It’s the board. I have to go.”

“Do you need me? I can …”

“No,” Rhett said quickly, shaking his head. At that moment, something inside Link crumbled. He thought he saw Rhett wince, but he couldn’t be sure through the tears forming in his eyes. 

“Oh,” was all Link could say. He drew up his knees to his chest, trying to hide himself from Rhett, from the world.

Rhett looked at him one more time, but didn’t say a word before walking to the door and walking out.

Link ran to the door after him, but the door slammed in his face. He locked the door, and then punched it as hard as he could, tears streaming down his face.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Rhett’s body crumpled as he sat down on the bed next to Link. Every cell in his body seemed to have shattered. He had no idea it could feel like that. He dropped his head, trying to collect himself, but his entire body was still shuddering with the pleasure. In a minute, when he had recovered, there would be more. He wanted more. And he was certain Link did, too

But then the phone rang silently, the vibration echoing like a terrible siren through the room.

“Rhett McLaughlin,” he answered after picking the phone up off the floor.

“Mr. McLaughlin, the board meeting is about to begin.”

He had forgotten. It hadn’t been written in his planner because the meetings were so regular he never bothered. Link hadn’t known to put it into the electronic calendar. And Rhett had gotten so caught up in this … in whatever this way, that he had forgotten. With the company in the state it was in, the CEO missing a board meeting could be devastating. 

“Will you be arriving soon?”

“Yes. Yes of course,” he replied, letting no emotion show on his face.

He didn’t look at Link at first. He couldn’t. The phone call had dropped him back into reality. He had lost himself in a moment of weakness. It couldn’t happen again. 

But couldn’t help himself. He looked at the man’s bare chest, his narrow hips, and the way he was still ready for whatever Rhett wanted to do to him. 

“Business,” Rhett said at last. “It’s the board. I have to go.”

Link looked up, his eyes eager. “Do you need me?”

“No,” he said quickly, all the while thinking about how much he did need him. But all he could do was watch as Link’s shoulders and face fell, his body curling into itself. He winced, knowing he had said the wrong thing, he and couldn’t take it back.

“Oh.”

The sound of that word and the look in Link’s eyes punched him in the gut, leaving him breathless. He wanted to take Link with him, wanted him by his side. But if he did, all he would think about was how much he wanted him. He couldn’t feel that way in front of the board. As it was, he would be lucky to have any degree of focus whatsoever.

He left quickly, striding across the floor as quickly as he could. After the door slammed behind him, he turned and rested his forehead and the palms of his hands there for just a moment, wishing he could go back. Forget the phone call. Forget the board. Forget everything but Link.

He heard the lock click into place, and then a heavy thud from the other side sent him flying backwards. Had Link … punched the door?

He shook the thought from his head and practically ran down the stairs and back to the waiting car. His driver asked no questions and sped back to the office for the meeting.

When he arrived, Rhett strode into the boardroom with every inch of power and confidence he could muster and said in the chair at the head of the table. He was late, but not so late that he couldn’t chalk it up to traffic. No one would know he had forgotten. What right did they have, anyway? He was the CEO, and while he didn’t hold a majority share, he did hold a huge percentage of the company stock. Who were they to tell him when to show up?

That was the attitude he carried as he took his seat and let the meeting begin.

He held his posture, made eye contact, and nodded along, but all he could see and hear was Link’s soft “oh,” and the look in his sad blue eyes. It played over and over in his mind.

He tried to shut it out. He was Rhett James McLaughlin. He didn’t have to worry about anyone else’s feelings. He was the CEO. Everyone else was there to serve him and his company. Link had served him and his needs. As he should.

Rhett felt bile rising in his throat. 

“Excu …” but he couldn’t finish the phrase. He bolted to the trash can in the corner of the room and retched violently, spilling the contents of his stomach. 

It was a horrible thing to think about another human being. But this was who he had become. And he hated it. He hated himself. Every last disgusting cell of his body. He had no idea how he would face Link the next day at work. If Link even bothered to come back. 

If he were Link, he never set foot in this building again.

“Mr. McLaughlin?” 

It was the chairman of the board, who had stood up, looking at Rhett over a pair of wire-rimmed glasses. 

“Mr. McLaughlin, are you feeling alright?”

Rhett nodded and stood, but immediately began to feel lightheaded. He made his way back to his chair quickly but could barely hold his head up.

The members of the board waited for Rhett to speak, but he said nothing. Finally, the chair spoke. “Mr. McLaughlin, you haven’t commented on the financial report.”

That’s when Rhett noticed the thick document sitting on the table in front of him. Just the thought of looking at it and trying to make sense of it made him want to throw up all over again.

“Things aren’t looking good,” the chair said, looking pointedly at Rhett. “We need to know what your plans are.”

Rhett dry heaved. He stared down the the report, but everything was blurry.

The chairman cleared his throat. “I propose we end this meeting and reconvene on Friday at noon. Our CEO is evidently ill and not up to participating fully at this time.” His tone was sharp and condescending. 

The motion was seconded and voted on, and the board members exited, leaving Rhett alone in the room. He stayed there for a long time, his body and his mind in agony. He put his head down, too ill to stand, too disgusted to move.

At some point, he fell asleep. When he woke, he had been asleep for hours, but he felt even more tired and beat down than before. He stumbled from the boardroom to his office and dropped the huge financial report on his desk. 

It was late. He could call his driver. But it was late. He would already he home with his family. Rhett hadn’t told him to wait. He could call a cab. But he just didn’t want to face a stranger.

So he walked, something he hadn’t done in years. Facing the chill of the night and the isolation of the city streets, he walked home, to any empty apartment and an empty bed.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Link turned and sank to the floor, curling into a ball with his back against the door. He was so stupid. He knew better than to let his guard down. Why had he let this man in? This man he had just met? He had been down this road before. He knew better. 

But it didn’t matter. It was over. It was time to turn off again. Build the walls back up. Lock his heart away.

Still throbbing with need, Link wiped his face and headed for the shower. He turned the water all the way to cold, letting it sting his skin. It hurt, but the physical pain distracted him from the soul-wrenching pain in his heart. It wasn’t Rhett. It was him. There was something about him that drove everyone away. It happened every time. Link would fall in deep, but the other person was never as in love as he was. And every time, Link had his heart broken.

This was no different. He made himself available, and Rhett took what he needed. Link had let that happen. Even though he knew exactly what would happen. He wasn’t good enough to stick around for.

When his teeth began to chatter and his lips turned blue, Link turned off the water and stood shivering in the shower stall, hugging his body. He let the water drip away for seconds, minutes, before grabbing a towel and patting his body dry. 

Naked, he hung up the towel and put on his glasses. He stared at himself in the mirror, facing himself and his reality.

“I’m going to work tomorrow,” he said outloud, doing his best to convince himself. “I’m going to work tomorrow.” He would go in. He would be the best assistant he could be. Better. And this? It didn’t happen. As far as Link was concerned, it had not happened. He would erase it from his memory. “I’m going to work tomorrow.”

He repeated the mantra getting louder each time, until he was screaming at the top of his lungs, “I am going to work tomorrow!” 

His hair hung limp and wet in his face. His eyes were red and his nostrils turned up in a snarl. 

He turned off the light and headed to bed.

Sleep came quickly, but Link’s dreams were scattered, a never-ending slide show of his ex-lovers’ faces and the family who had disowned him, but mostly he saw Rhett’s face. Rhett saying he didn’t need him. Rhett leaving.

Link woke in the morning with a racing heart, feeling more tired than when he had gone to bed. But he was still determined. He ate a bowl of cereal, then brushed his teeth and washed his face. He dressed in clothes he felt good in, not what he thought was appropriate for the job. For Link, that was a pair of well-fitting jeans, a black t-shirt, a purple cardigan, and black canvas sneakers. 

It wasn’t professional, but he looked good and felt comfortable .He wouldn’t put on a show. He would be Link Neal, and he would be amazing at his job. 

Rhett could take him or leave him

He arrived at the office at the same time as the previous day. He made coffee and went to the desk to look for the calendar to work on the day’s schedule. But sitting on Rhett’s desk was an enormous document that hadn’t been there the previous day. It was a financial report of some kind.

Link started to look at it, but that wasn’t what he was supposed to be doing. He took out the calendar to begin his actual job, but the financial report was beckoning him.

Rhett had told him that he was to be a watchdog. That was part of the job, too. He started looking down the front page, trying to get a sense of the report. As he paged through, he sat down in Rhett’s chair without thinking. 

And then he started finding things. Things that didn’t add up. Figures that didn’t match. Something was indeed very wrong with the report. Link reached across the desk and grabbed the only pen there, the pen he himself had given Rhett, and began to scribble calculations over the document.

He kept finding more and more pieces that didn’t fit, and was so deeply invested in the work, that he didn’t hear the door squeak open or hear his boss approach, until the deep voice roared across the room.

“What are you doing in my chair?”


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Rhett stepped into his office. Sitting at his desk, in his chair, was Link, furiously writing across the financial report he had left there the night before. Link reached up and brushed a lock of brown hair back and out of his face, giving Rhett a momentary glimpse of Link’s eyes. He was focused and determined. And gorgeous. 

He wanted to run to Link and apologize. He wanted kneel at Link’s feet and look up into those deep blue eyes. He wanted to beg for mercy.

Instead, he bellowed.

“What are you doing in my chair?”

And he received the most unexpected reaction he could have imagined.

Link didn’t look up. He merely raised the index finger of his left hand in a sharp gesture, indicating that Rhett needed to wait for him. Rhett’s eyebrow rose, and he watched as Link continued writing for another minute.

When he finally looked up, Link had a look in his eyes Rhett hadn’t seen before. His blue eyes gleamed with pride, and the smile on his lips was cocksure. 

“I’m going to save your company,” he said. 

Rhett stormed to the desk. “What are you talking about?” He ripped the report out of Link’s hands and began to examine it. Link had circled numbers, drawn arrows, and scribbled calculations all over every page. Rhett couldn’t begin to make sense of it.

“What is all this? Why are you going through my papers?”

Link stood, and for once, his posture was straight, his back erect, his shoulders wide and powerful. “You asked me to look out for anything that didn’t add up, sir,” he said, his eyes fiery. “And this? This doesn’t add up. Someone is stealing from you.”

Rhett’s heart was racing. “Who?” he demanded. “Nobody would dare to steal from me.”

Link’s shoulders fell, but only by perhaps a quarter inch. “I don’t know,” he said. “But it’s a lot of money.”

Rhett glared at Link, his eyes narrow with fury. The papers wrinkled as his hands tightened in his fists. An era passed. 

But then Rhett looked to Link and smiled. “Well, let’s find out then.”

Link looked almost gleeful. “What can I do, sir?”

Rhett gave him a list of information to start gathering from various departments. Documents, invoices, and all kinds of other records that might help them sort out the mess.

With instructions in hand, Link started out the door to begin his investigation. 

“As quick as you can, Link. And don’t tell anyone what you’re doing.”

“Yes, sir!”

The door was about to shut. Rhett almost didn’t call him back, but something inside of him jumped out, overpowering his instincts. “Link?” he said softly.

Link turned back, looking quizzically at his boss.

“Call me Rhett.”

Link opened his mouth to speak, but was silent. He closed his mouth and merely nodded. As Link walked away, Rhett looked down at his desk, a small smile emerging on his face. 

Link spent the entire day gathering everything he could find, in both paper and electronic records from every department while Rhett continued his business as if nothing else was happening.

When Link finally returned from his quest, it was late, and Rhett sent him home. “Get a good night’s sleep. Tomorrow, we’ll sort this all out.”

After Link left, Rhett began to look through what Link had returned with, but he had no eye for the details. He would never have found the inaccuracies Link had found. He would need Link to figure out where they were coming from.

On Wednesday morning, Rhett arrived before Link, but only by minutes. Link immediately started toward the coffee cabinet, but Rhett stopped him.

“I got coffee on the way,” he said, gesturing to two paper cups on the desk. “Figured it would save us some time. Cream and sugar okay with you?”

“Oh, yes,” Link said with a small smile. “Thank you, sir.”

Rhett handed Link one of the cups, their fingers briefly touching. “It’s Rhett,” he said. 

Link blushed, and took the coffee. “Thank you, Rhett.”

Rhett turned his gaze back to the desk, hiding the big smile creeping across his face. He loved the way his name sounded coming from Link’s lips. 

After taking a few sips of coffee, Link spread a series of documents across Rhett’s desk. With the chair wheeled away, both men stood before the desk, on the hunt for any clues. They both stood with their hands resting just on the edge of the desk. Rhett reached for an invoice, and as he did, his pinky finger just brushed against Link’s. He expected Link to recoil, but he didn’t. 

Rhett cleared his throat. “Here, take a look at this one,” he said, handing the paper to Link. “I’ve never heard of this company. And it just says we paid them for ‘miscellaneous.’”

“Hmm, Link said. “Let me look that up.”

Link stepped to the side and quickly typed in the name of the mysterious company, AZTech. He squinted toward the monitor. “That can’t be right,” he mumbled.

Rhett watched as Link retyped the name in a variety of ways. “There’s nothing,” he said. “Nothing.”

Rhett’s brow furrowed. “So what do we do?”

“I’d bet my life that this company is the key we need. We need to find everything with AZTech on it. Somewhere, there has to be a clue.”

The men started scanning quickly through every piece of paper on the desk, setting aside anything with the name AZTech on it. Rhett reached for an invoice without looking and his hand landed on top of Link’s. 

Rhett heard the hitch in Link’s breath, but he didn’t remove his hand. Slowly, Rhett let fingers glide up the back of Link’s hand, and then to his wrist. The skin there was soft, and he could feel the blood pulsing through Link’s veins. 

Link let Rhett’s hand rest there for a moment before finally picking up the invoice. He cleared his throat. “Here,” he said, his voice cracking like a prepubescent boy. “This one.”

Rhett took it, and added it to the pile. 

They continued on, through the rest of the day. Rhett had dinner delivered so they could work on through the evening, and Link kept more coffee flowing. They’d found every document that referenced AZTech, and now faced the task of finding the clue that would lead them to the source.

Link had gone back to the financial report and was sitting on the floor cross referencing reports from individual departments with the main report while he ate from a Chinese takeout container. Rhett watched as his assistant stretched out his long lean legs across the hardwood floor, completely focused on his work, unaware of the image he was creating. 

Rhett quietly took his phone from his pocket and zoomed in on Link. A shaft of light from the window perfectly illuminated Link’s face. Rhett carefully adjusted the camera until the shot was perfectly framed, and took the picture. 

He opened up a photo editing app and changed it to black and white. “Beautiful,” he whispered, in awe of how unaware the man was of his own beauty.

“Hmm?” Link asked, looking up.

Rhett stuff the phone into his pocket. “I was just thinking we should quit for the night.

 

Link shook his head. “We still don’t know what’s going on,” he said. “We barely have any time left.”

Rhett nodded. “Okay. One more hour. Then we both need to go home.”

Link immediately buried his head back in his work. Rhett was too distracted, though. He didn’t know what to look for or how to find it. Link had this ability to hone in on information and put together all the tiny pieces into something that made sense. Rhett had no idea just how intelligent his assistant was. With his floppy hair and blue eyes, he looked impossibly young and naive. But Rhett was beginning to see that there was much more to Link than that.

After standing around for a few minutes, feeling useless, Rhett walked over and sat down on the floor next to Link. 

“What can I do?” Rhett asked quietly. “I don’t know how to help.”

Link handed Rhett a document. “What does this department do?” he asked.

Rhett took it. “Training Department? I don’t … I don’t know.” Rhett hated to admit it, but for as much as he prided himself on still being completely in charge, the company had gotten too big. Things had gotten past him. Too much. 

“Well, all the money that’s going to AZTech is coming from this department. And that’s the only money changing hands there. I think ...” Link hesitated. “I think the whole department is probably fake.”

Rhett stood up and began pacing the floor. “Goddamn it! How did I let this happen? I’m the CEO. I’m supposed to be in charge. How could an entire fake department crop up right under my nose? And who the hell is AZTech?” He stopped at the desk and pounded his fist into it. 

“Hey.” Link stood and approached Rhett. A soft hand fell on Rhett’s shoulder. “It’s not your fault. Your company is huge. And you’re only one man. Whoever did this is good. They’ve covered their tracks well.”

Rhett exhaled, and he felt the fire in his eyes as he looked down at Link. “I am Rhett James McLaughlin. Nobody gets away with stealing my money.”

“And they won’t. We’re going to figure out who did this.”

“We have to do it before the board meeting on Friday.”

Link turned Rhett toward him, a hand on each shoulder. The determination in Link’s eyes was fierce. “We will, Rhett. Together.”


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

When they broke for the night, Link snuck most of the necessary files into his backpack before taking the elevator downstairs with Rhett. He had every intention of staying up as long as he needed to figure out this puzzle. If Rhett knew Link was going to keep working, he would, too. But Link could tell that Rhett was tired, so he didn’t tell him his plans.

Rhett insisted on giving Link a ride home again. “I can walk, Rhett. It’s fine.”

“I don’t like that neighborhood, Link.” The low, gruff sound of Rhett’s voice wrapped Link up in a warm blanket. It was a strange feeling, having someone want to protect him. Part of him loved it, and part of him told him to resist with every fiber of his being.

Link sighed. “I know. But I’m fine.”

As they approached the car, Rhett opened the door and gestured for Link to climb in. Link hesitated, not ready to give Rhett this piece of him. But Rhett grabbed his arm, his long fingers wrapping complete around Link’s bicep. He steered Link into the car, not giving him a choice.

Link said no more, allowing Rhett to take control, at least for that moment.

When the driver pulled up to Link’s apartment, Rhett quickly got out of the car to open the door and let Link out. Link felt a smile tug at his lips, but he didn’t let Rhett see it. He merely nodded at Rhett and started toward the door. 

As he opened the door to enter the building, he heard Rhett call to him. “Hey, Link?” There seemed to be a question in the air.

Link turned around. Rhett shifted his weight from one side to the other, and then stuffed his hands in the pockets of his coat. “Get to work early tomorrow. We’ve only got one day to crack this.”

“Yes, sir,” he replied. “I mean … of course … Rhett.”

Rhett looked at his shoes, and then got back in the car without another word. Link immediately ran into the building and upstairs as quickly as possible. He took out the documents he had secreted away, got out his laptop, and started searching. 

Hours later, he finally had the answer. He didn’t even think about what time it was when he called Rhett.

The phone rang and rang, and then went to voicemail. Link hung up and called again. Rhett finally picked up on the fourth call.

“This better be important,” Rhett said in a sleepy snarl.

“I know who it is,” Link said, nearly jumping out of his skin. Between the adrenaline coursing through his body and the utter exhaustion he hadn’t yet noticed, he was literally shaking.

“Link? What the hell, man? It’s three in the morning.”

“Rhett, I know who is stealing from the company!”

“Are you still working? You should have gone to bed hours ago.”

“Rhett, will you listen to me! I’ve been working on this since you dropped me off, and I finally figured it out! Don’t you want to know?”

“Of course I do! I’m just barely awake. Give me a second, okay?” 

Link heard the creak of bedsprings, and a vague shuffling noise, and then running water. Rhett gulped down a glass of water. “Okay, I’m awake. Sort of. Tell me what you found.”

Link started talking excitedly, his words too quick, his voice too high-pitched. “Well, you see, I found the P.O. Box the invoices were going to and I cross-referred that with …”

“LINK,” Rhett said in a command that went through Link’s body like lightening, even over the phone. “I’m not awake enough for details. Even if I was awake, I wouldn’t care. Just tell me who it is.”

“It’s Alexander Holt. Your chief financial officer.”

There was a silence. Then Rhett screamed, and a glass shattered. Link had to hold the phone away from his ear. When he put it back, he heard fast, gasping breaths.

“Rhett?” Link talked in a low whisper. “Are you okay?”

“I will be. Get some sleep, Link. Bring everything with you tomorrow. Sleep in a little. I’ll pick you up at eight.”

“Eight? But you said …”

“You did all the work, already. Get some sleep.”

And then he was gone. Rhett had hung up, leaving Link staring at the screen of his phone. But Rhett was right. He needed rest. He started to get undressed, but as he pulled off his shirt, he realized just how tired he really was, and fell into the bed, still wearing his jeans.

He woke to a heavy pounding on his door. 

He looked at his phone. It was almost 8:30 in the morning, and he had a series of missed calls from Rhett.

Link scrambled to the door and opened it. Rhett stood there, his fist in the air, ready to knock again. 

“I’m so sorry, sir. I didn’t set an alarm and I was so tired, I guess I overslept and …” But he trailed off when he realized that he was shirtless and that Rhett couldn’t take his eyes off Link’s bare chest. Link felt all the blood in his body rushing to his groin. 

“Umm, just let me clean up and throw some clothes on and I’ll be ready go to in a minute.”

Rhett nodded mutely and Link backed up slowly and headed to the bathroom, grabbing whatever clothes he could find along the way. He didn’t have time for a full shower, so he quickly washed his hair under the shower, gave his body a once-over with a washcloth, and quickly got dressed. It was just a black t-shirt and jeans, but he hadn’t done laundry and didn’t have time to look for anything else.

He emerged from the bathroom, running his fingers through his hair to get the tangles out. Rhett was sitting on Link’s bed, in the same position in which he had last sat there, legs spread, head in hands.

Link watched him for a moment, waiting for his boss to do something, but he didn’t speak or move. As he approached, he could hear the tell-tale signs; Rhett had been crying.

Link knelt on the floor in front of Rhett and laid a gentle hand on his knee. “Rhett? What’s going on?”

Rhett wiped his face with both hands and took a breath. Link could hear his chest heaving as he fought with his body not to cry more.

“Rhett, whatever it is, it’s okay. You can talk to me. If you want. Or we can just wait to leave until you’re ready.”

Rhett still said nothing, and Link was about ready to stand up. But then Rhett reached forward and cupped Link’s face with his hand.

“I am so sorry, Link,” he said, a single tear streaming down his face.

Link looked at him quizzically. “What for?”

“For … for leaving that night.”

It had only been a few days ago. But a million years seemed to have passed since then. Still, when Rhett brought it up, Link felt that hole open up in his heart again.

Link shook his head. “You don’t owe me anything.” But his voice had turned cold.

“I at least owe you basic human decency. I didn’t have to leave like that. I could have at least explained myself. Or …” But now Rhett trailed off. 

Link had wanted to forget all of that. He had wanted to close himself off. But that was when he thought Rhett was just like all of the others. But after this week, and after seeing the man brought to tears, he was beginning to doubt that first impression. Perhaps, like Link, Rhett had secret hurts, too.

Link removed Rhett’s hand from his face and held it between his own hands. “Listen, it’s over. We have a lot to do today. So let’s forget this for now and go to work.”

“But Link, you don’t understand.”

“I don’t have to understand. At least, not right now. You have a company to save.”

Rhett nodded, and Link stood, and then handed Rhett a box of tissues from his night stand. Rhett blew his nose, wiped his face, and the two were off to work.

It was a long day. Link showed Rhett everything he had found and then they met for hours with the company’s attorney. There was more to do, of course, and the attorney insisted on arranging for an independent audit before going to the police, which would take time, but Rhett trusted Link enough to take the next step, which was presenting everything to the board.

But the whole day, Link knew that there was more Rhett wanted to say, and it nagged at him incessantly. Some of it was just guilt, he presumed. Rhett felt bad about acting like an asshole. But that wouldn’t move a person to tears, would it? Something else was going on, and Link had no idea what. 

He did know that every so often, he would look up and find Rhett staring at him. And the look in his eyes was shy and soft, the polar opposite of the man Link had met just days ago. Link’s heart fluttered each time he noticed it, but each time, he quickly looked away, not prepared to face whatever it was that Rhett wanted to tell him.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

“You should do it, Link,” Rhett insisted. “You did all the work. You should present this.”

It was almost time for the board meeting. They had spent the day preparing everything they had compiled into a presentation for the board, and Rhett wanted Link to get the credit he deserved.

“No,” Link insisted. “It’s your company. If you do this, then it’s you saving the company. You keep their respect.”

“But I didn’t save the company. You did. Don’t you want them to know that?” 

Rhett sat on the corner of his desk while Link paced back and forth. 

“No, Rhett, I don’t. I did my job. This part is your job.”

Rhett couldn’t understand. He would never have let someone else take credit for his work. It was why he had insisted on keeping control over as much of the company as he could. 

But what he truly couldn’t understand was why he wanted so badly for Link to take credit for this. Normally, he would have taken the work of one of his underlings and presented it himself with no thought whatsoever. But he didn’t want credit for this. He wanted to let Link have a moment in the sun.

Rhett looked up at Link, an unusual position for him, with one long leg was draped over the side of the desk. “What if they ask questions I can’t answer?”

“We’ve been over this all morning. You can answer their questions. And if you don’t have the answer, just tell them they can read the report themselves when the independent audit is done. The important thing here is just that they believe you. The audit and the police will take care of the rest. Right now, you need their trust.”

Rhett nodded. 

“But you’ll be there?”

Link took three steps until he was directly in front of Rhett. He placed on hand on top of Rhett’s thigh. “Right by your side.”

Rhett shivered as Link’s hand lingered, his pinky dragging slowly down the inside of Rhett’s leg. Yet, Link’s touch seemed to ground him, keeping him focused, holding him together, despite all the conflicting emotions boiling inside of him.

“Alright. Let’s do this.”

Link gathered the copies of the report he had prepared and Rhett led him to the board room. The board had already gathered, waiting impatiently for Rhett. He could feel the tension in the air as they all stared at him and his assistant. 

They had lost faith in him. He could see that now. Perhaps it was because the finances had gone down so quickly. Perhaps it was because had never listened to them, always steamrolling ahead on his own instincts. But he would change that today.

“Gentleman,” Rhett began, as Link made his way the table handing out reports. “I have some news to share with you.” He looked up, smiling, and met Link’s eyes across the table.

Link returned his smile, and winked. Yes. He could do this.

An hour later, the members of the board left the room, grumbling and shaking their heads, but praising Rhett for his work. The chief financial officer had stormed out of the room upon Rhett’s accusation, practically announcing his guilt. But by the end of the meeting, Rhett had convinced the rest of the board that the company would survive and flourish.

When the last member of the board had finally left, Rhett jumped out of his seat and ran to Link. He hoisted Link up by the waist, spinning him around in a circle.

“We did it, Link!” he said, as he set the smaller man back down. Link smiled up at him, but stumbled slightly as he struggled to get his footing. Rhett’s hands tightened around Link’s waist to steady him.

“You did it,” Link said, resting his hands lightly on Rhett’s forearms. 

“We,” Rhett insisted. 

Link nodded in acceptance. “Alright. We.”

They headed back to Rhett’s office, but Rhett found he was too full of energy to even think about work. His body shook with glee and he couldn’t stop smiling.

After trying for half an hour to get anything done, he finally turned to Link, who was busy reorganizing all of the documents they had pulled earlier in the week. 

“We need to go celebrate.”

Link looked up from the disorganized pile of papers. “But it’s only 1:30. And I’ve got all of this to refile. It’s going to take forever.”

“I don’t care about it, Link. We’re going out. Come on.”

“Not yet,” Link insisted.

Rhett tried to wait patiently, but he couldn’t find anything to do that he could focus on. He tried helping Link, but his frenetic pace just annoyed Link and seemed to slow the work down. He replied to a few inconsequential emails, but couldn’t concentrate on anything more important.

When 4:00 approached, Rhett practically dragged Link from the office. The refiling was complete, but Link was still fussing over it. Rhett appreciated his assistant’s attention to detail, but he couldn’t begin to care about such things. Not that day.

He shoved Link into his car and directed the driver to take them straight to Trinity, the most upscale restaurant in the city. Upon their arrival, Rhett bounded out of the car and pulled Link inside by the hand. 

They sat down at a small table for two near the window.

“A bottle of your most expensive champagne,” Rhett told the waiter, who merely nodded his head and walked away.

Rhett looked to Link and was disappointed with what he saw. Link’s eyes were wide and somewhat sad, his hands folded in his lap, and his shoulders downturned. 

“What’s wrong, Link?” he asked. “We owned that board room. You should be happy!”

“I am,” Link insisted, but his body language said otherwise.

Rhett set down his menu. “Be honest with me, Link.”

“I’ve just never been inside a restaurant like this before.” 

That’s when Rhett realized Link was dressed very simply, in black slacks and a black dress shirt. No tie, no jacket. His shoes were scuffed and faded. To Rhett, he looked delicious, elegant even, but all the other men in the restaurant were in full, expensive suits. Link was also significantly younger than anyone else around. 

Rhett nodded. “It’s just you and me here, Link. Ignore everything else.”

Link took a deep breath, but Rhett could still see the tension Link held in his neck and shoulders. 

Just then, the waiter arrived with the champagne. The pop made Link jump, and Rhett held in a chuckle at the sight. After it was poured and the waiter left them, Rhett handed Link a glass. 

“This should help,” he said, grinning.

Link’s long fingers held the stem of the glass delicately, his pinky extended outward. He held the flute out toward Rhett. “Dink it?”

Now Rhett did chuckle. Of course they would toast, but he had never heard anyone describe it that way. “Dink it and drink it,” he replied.

They tapped the glasses together. Rhett took a sip, while Link slugged back a huge mouthful. It was unrefined and perhaps uncouth, but something about Link’s naivete intrigued him. He had a feeling Link would be just as intimidated by the menu, so he ordered huge kobe beef steaks for them both. He didn’t let Link see the price.

Soon, with a few glasses of champagne in them and plates of food on the table, Rhett and Link were laughing and eating. Rhett was surprised to find that Link was a master of bad jokes and terrible puns, and he loved every second of it. He laughed so hard, he found it difficult to eat his meal.

When they finished eating, Rhett was about to order a second bottle of champagne when he looked up and realized that other patrons were staring at the two men with caustic eyes. They were too loud and raucous for Trinity’s typical guests. But he was having too much fun to end the day. 

“You wanna go somewhere else?” he asked. 

Link nodded quickly, just barely biting his bottom lip. 

Once the bill was paid, they departed hurriedly, still giggling at the last bad pun Link had made. And for once, Rhett realized he didn’t care what anyone else thought. He was having the best day he’d had in a long time.

In the car, Rhett wondered where Link would go to celebrate. Rhett had always celebrated his successes with fancy meals and expensive drinks. But he had no idea what Link would do.

“Where to?” he asked. 

“What, you want me to decide?”

“Yeah, you,” Rhett said. “This was just as much your success as mine, if not more so. So where would you go to celebrate?”

Link put a hand on his chin, running his index finger lightly over his lips. And after a moment, he grinned.

“Karaoke.”

The Song Saloon was surprisingly close to Rhett’s apartment, but it was well hidden in a corner of the city he wouldn’t have traipsed into. It was his turn to feel out of place in his suit, as most of the male clientele were in jeans and t-shirts, the women in skimpy dresses. But Rhett had no eyes for them. His eyes were glued to Link, who unbuttoned the top two buttons of his shirt and rolled up his sleeves as they entered. 

Link ordered a pitcher of cheap beer and found them a table near the stage. They drank half of it before either of them had the liquid courage to get up on stage. 

Rhett watched as Link chugged half a glass of beer and then hopped up. Rhett couldn’t hear what song he requested. The lights glinted off Link’s glasses as he took the stage. He ran a hand through his mane of wild hair as he waited for the music.

Rhett couldn’t take his eyes off Link.

But when the music started, he could hardly believe his ears. Link’s singing wasn’t just good enough for karaoke. He was good. Very good. And the song was a favorite of Rhett’s. But the time Link got to the chorus, Rhett was dancing in his seat, and he couldn’t help but run up and join Link on stage. He grabbed the second microphone and starting to sing.

“All night long …” he belted out, their voices melding together into a glorious harmony.

Link turned to face Rhett, his face unable to contain his joy. At the end of the song, they had forgotten there was an audience at all. Rhett, at least, was singing only to Link. He wanted this to last. Forever. In all of his years of business success, he had never felt even a modicum of the joy he felt in that moment, drunkenly singing on stage with a man he couldn’t help but admire.

Another pitcher of beer and another two songs later, Rhett could barely contain himself. He was stumbling and slurring and laughing like a man being tickled uncontrollably.

“I think it’s time we got you home,” Link said. Rhett wondered how Link was still so sober. If he thought hard, he thought that maybe he had drank a few more glasses than Link had, but could it be that many?

“I’m fine,” Rhett insisted, but nearly fell out of his chair as he tried to sit.

“Come on,” Link said. He pulled Rhett to his feet and wrapped an arm around his waist to steady him. 

In the car, Rhett laid down and rested his head on Link’s lap. “This ... this was fun, man. I’ve never sung karo … karkeoke … whatever … before.”

Link shifted in his seat. “You, sir, are drunk.”

“Don’t call me sir,” Rhett slurred. “I am not your boss right now. I am …” He pointed a finger up at Link’s nose, but couldn’t find the words for what he wanted to be to Link. He let his hand drop.

The car stopped. Link hoisted Rhett into a seated position and then got out of the car. “I’ll walk him upstairs,” Link told the driver through the window. “Don’t wait for me. I’ll walk.”

Rhett wanted to protest, but he couldn’t get words out fast enough. Link was already pulling him out of the car.

The elevator ride was a blur, and soon Rhett found himself stumbling through his apartment. “Bedroom’s that way,” he said, pointing. Link moved them along, until he set Rhett down on his huge bed.

Rhett laid back and stared up at the ceiling. His stretched his arms out and smiled stupidly. “This is the best day ever.”

“You going to be okay?” Link asked. “Cause I’ll just get going.”

“No!” Rhett roared, sitting up. “Don’t go.”

Link stared at him, biting his bottom lip hard. His breathing had gone heavy. 

Rhett stood slowly, trying hard to find his legs. “I don’t … I don’t want you to go.”

Link took half a step toward him. “What do you want, Rhett?” 

Rhett looked down, then back up. He raised a hand to Link’s cheek. “You. I want you.”

Rhett leaned down and placed his lips on Link’s, pressing them together gently. Then he backed away and gazed down into the ocean of Link’s eyes. He knew he couldn’t force this, whatever ts was. But he knew he wanted it. Every cell in his body wanted it.

For a moment, Link looked like he was going to walk away. But in a flash, Rhett was on his back on the bed, his lips and his body crushed underneath Link. He surged with desire, pressing his body upwards to meet Link. 

There was a flurry of arms and legs and flying fabric, and their clothes were in a heap on the floor. For a moment, they were standing chest to chest, lips and tongues dancing, and then Link turned Rhett around.

Rhett felt Link’s hands on his hips, caressing in circles, and soft kisses on the back of his neck. Gently, Link pushed him forward until Rhett was bent over the bed. Rhett felt hands on his backside and fingers wandering toward unexplored depths.

Rhett sucked in a sharp breath, and the fingers retreated. 

“Do you want me to stop?” Link asked in a breathy whisper.

Rhett turned and sat on the edge of the bed. “No, it’s just …”

“Just what?”

Rhett felt himself go flaccid as blood rushed instead to his cheeks. He looked down at his feet.

“What is it?”

“I’ve …” He hesitated. But he looked up at Link, and somehow he could see in those eyes that it would be okay. He could be honest. He didn’t have to be Rhett James McLaughlin. He could just be Rhett.

“I’ve never done this before.”

“With a man, you mean?”

“I mean … at all.”

Link backed up a step. “But you and I …”

“That’s different,” Rhett said. “Women have done … that … to me before. But I’ve never … I’ve never slept with any of them.”

“Never?” Link’s voice was calm, but Rhett could hear the disbelief there.

“Never.”

“Then why did you …” Link’s voice trailed off. But Rhett understood the question.

“You’re the first man I’ve ever done anything with,” Rhett answered. He didn’t let himself delay answering, or he might not answer at all. “I know I … initiated … but I don’t know what came over me. I was just … “

He looked up at Link, hoping his eyes would tell the story. He had never had the courage before. But his attraction to Link overpowered him. It had been like being propelled by unseen forces. 

Link’s face was quizzical. “So you’re not … “

“I am,” Rhett answered quickly. “I always have been. But I’ve never told anyone.”

And in that moment, it seemed that Link understood, because he knelt before Rhett and kissed his knees, his thighs, his hands, his shoulders, and finally his lips. Every touch of those lips brought Rhett closer and closer to the man he had always wanted to be.

“Stand up,” Link whispered.

Rhett did as Link said. Link took his place on the bed, but positioned himself further up the bed. 

“Now come here.” It came out half a command, half a growl.

Rhett practically bounced on Link, smashing their bodies together. Link spread his legs, allowing Rhett to settle into him. Rhett groaned as his felt them come together at the hips. Link was as hard as he was, and the feeling of them rubbing together was like nothing he had ever imagined. 

Link gripped Rhett’s hips, stopping him from grinding them together. “Not yet,” he said. He took Rhett’s hand and brought it to his face, letting Rhett touch his cheeks, and then his lips. Slowly, Link took Rhett’s fingers into his mouth, licking each one up and down with his long tongue, the sight of which nearly sent Rhett into convulsions. 

But then Link took Rhett’s hand and guided it slowly downward until Rhett’s fingers were just in the right place. Rhett raised an eyebrow, not understanding.

Link directed him further, letting out a gasp as Rhett’s fingers entered him. “This is how you get me ready.”

Rhett hesitantly worked a single finger in and out, and at Link’s insistence, added a second. 

Link reached down, stroking Rhett up and down, until they were both ready.

“Now,” Link said, his voice now fully commanding Rhett to do his bidding. 

Rhett removed his fingers and used his hand to slowly guide himself into Link. He moved with caution, afraid that he would hurt Link, but mostly terrified of the line he was about to cross. He knew he was falling hard, and if he did this, he would be confirming to himself that this was truly who he was. And he wasn’t sure if he would be able to hide it any longer if he went through with it.

But Link gave him no choice. He took Rhett by the hips and pulled him close, forcing Rhett inside him. Both men gasped and moaned. Rhett fell forward, but caught himself with his hands on either side of Link’s head. Link grabbed a fistful of hair at the back of Rhett’s head and pulled him down, kissing him hard. Their tongues fought a cage match to the death as Link bucked his hips upward.

Rhett had never known pleasure like this. It wasn’t the act itself. It was being skin to skin with someone he cared for. It was being kissed by someone who seemingly cared for him. It was letting someone else take the reins. It was being lost in a moment and for once not caring what the world would think.

Just then, Link broke away from the kiss and pulled Rhett in tighter. Link screamed, and Rhett felt him erupt. Tremors went through them both, and soon Rhett joined him. He thrust in wild movements, moaning and calling Link’s name, and finally collapsing on top of the smaller man. 

There were a mess of sweat and cum and sweet kisses. But Rhett didn’t want to move. If he could, he would have given up everything to live in that moment of ecstasy, where nothing mattered except what lie between them.

But his muscles, exhausted from the effort, gave out, and he soon collapsed on the bed next to Link. Link made a movement, and Rhett thought he was trying to leave. 

“Don’t go,” he said, and grabbed Link around the waist with a strong arm. He laid on his side and pulled Link’s back to his chest, spooning around his damp body. “Stay,” he whispered.

Link answered only by shifting slightly and pressing his body tighter into Rhett’s. Their bodies seemed made to fit together. 

Rhett was started to drift off, but before he could fall asleep, he hugged Link as close as he could. 

“Link?”

“Hmm?”

“I think I …”

“Shhh. Don’t.”

“But I …”

“Just … let this be what it is. Go to sleep. We’ll talk tomorrow.”

Rhett paused, and then kissed the top of Link’s head. Before he knew it, sleep took him.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Link rolled over, and instead of hitting the wall, as it did in his own apartment, his hand landed gently on the soft bed. It was still warm there in the empty spot. He rolled into it and let the warmth envelope him. He inhaled the scent Rhett had left behind. It was sweat and musk and earth. It was home.

But before he let that thought settle into place, he threw the covers off and started looking for his clothing. He pulled on his underwear and pants, but his shirt was nowhere to be found. More importantly, he couldn’t find his glasses. At home, he always set them carefully on the nightstand so they wouldn’t get scratched. But he didn’t even remember taking them off in the frenzy.

He started toward the bedroom door and heard Rhett moving around and … humming? It was a curious thing to hear coming from the imposing man he had met during his interview. Though, as he had discovered, that imposing man was only the veneer Rhett wore on the outside. The true Rhett was turning out to be a very different person indeed. 

Link opened the door and found Rhett in the kitchen, his hair disheveled, humming a cheery tune and wearing only his boxer shorts. Link saw an open container of eggs and the aroma of bacon filled the air. His back, long and muscled, was to Link, and he hadn’t yet noticed that his guest had woken.

Link cleared his throat. Rhett turned, his eyes huge and his mouth in a full, toothy smile. 

“Link! I thought you were still asleep. I was going to bring you breakfast.”

Link noticed the tray on the counter, already laid out with a plate and a mug of coffee. “You didn’t have to do that.” His voice was flat.

But Rhett didn’t seem to notice. “Oh, here, I found your glasses on the floor this morning. They were kind of smudged so I cleaned them for you.”

Rhett walked over to where Link stood and gently, carefully hooked them over Link’s ears and slid them back. Link smiled, but his teeth were clenched. “Thanks.”

With his glasses on, he was able to get a better look at the apartment. It was stark and clean, and completely without personality. It fit with the idea of Rhett, the CEO, but not the Rhett he was beginning to know. It was cold, and it made Link feel like he was being watched, as if he were in some TV set instead of in a person’s home.

Rhett switched off the stove and hastily spooned eggs and bacon onto the plate. It was more than Link could ever eat in a sitting. Rhett had cooked for an army. But his stomach did growl.

Rhett giggled at the noise, and Link almost giggled at that. A giggle. So strange. But the way Rhett’s cheeks turned upward and pink when he laughed was so endearing that he had to smile. 

“Here, let’s just eat here,” Rhett said. He gestured to a couple of bar stools and sat down. Link joined him, settling onto the stool gingerly. Saliva worked in a pinch, but he’d been just drunk enough not to notice that it really hadn’t been adequate. Not for a man of Rhett’s girth. And frankly, it had been some time since Link had been with anyone. 

Rhett handed him a fork, but there was still just the one plate. Were they supposed to share? Link felt his brain tumbling over and over the events of the previous few days. Yes, they had worked closely together, and they had certainly been intimate the night before. But that was just sex. This was something else.

Rhett had noticed his hesitation, and his face fell a bit. “Is this weird? I should have asked. I’ll get another plate.” 

He started to get up, but Link stopped him. “No, not, not at all. I was just thinking.”

Rhett settled back into this seat and his smile returned. Link took a forkful of eggs, and Rhett followed suit. Link wasn’t sure why he had stopped him. But seeing Rhett happy like made Link warm inside, and when he saw Rhett’s disappointment, he didn’t want to ruin the moment for Rhett. He didn’t want that smile to disappear. 

Link purposely ate slowly, letting Rhett take a bigger portion. The eggs were basic, but tasty, and the bacon was, well, bacon. And bacon was always good. Every so often, their forks would clink together, and Rhett would chuckle. By the time they had finished, they had worked out a dance of sorts. Link was almost sad to see it end. 

As Rhett cleared the plate and forks, Link sipped his coffee and looked around the apartment some more. It was open, and he could see the living room which opened out only a balcony. Next to the balcony door, he noticed something he hadn’t before.

“You play?” he asked, gesturing to the acoustic guitar.

For a second, Rhett’s face took on a shade of melancholy, but it was gone quickly. “Used to,” he said. “I don’t have much time for it anymore.”

“Oh.” Link had hoped to open up some kind of conversation. The entire morning was surreal, eating breakfast with his boss that he’d just slept with, whose virginity he had taken. The word awkward didn’t begin to cover it.

Rhett picked up his own mug of coffee and took a long swing, and then set it down hard on the counter. “Oh, what the hell. Want to hear something?”

Link nodded. Both men walked into the living area and Link settled down into the leather couch, coffee mug still in hand. Rhett, still dressed minimally, picked up the guitar and strummed a few chords, adjusting the pegs as he did. Link watched Rhett’s ears perk toward the strings, listening for the pitch, and his fingers gently caressing the strings, until the music flowed freely.

Link rested his head against the cushions as Rhett began to play a slow, soulful tune in a minor key. It was something like a ballad, with just a hint of country and a dash of blues. It swayed and rocked, and Link began to unconsciously roll his head back and forth with the rhythm, getting lost in the refrain that kept coming back. It was clear Rhett was, or at least had been, more than just a casual player.

“What is this song?” he asked. 

Rhett’s eyes were closed as he continued to play. “Something I wrote a long time ago. Never found the words to go with it, though.”

Link sat up and placed his coffee cup on the table in front of him. He stood and began to pace, his hips undulating slowly with each step. He let the music flow through his body, letting it speak to him. He leaned on the glass door the led to the balcony, staring out at the skyline, and opened his mouth, singing.

“Empty rooms and barren walls  
My voice echoes down the hall  
It’s far too cold and far too late  
This wretched pain will not abate

All this time, I’ve been alone  
Darkness rages in my bones  
Wasted years and wasted life  
Only solitary strife

Yet there you are, standing there  
My heart’s song is in the air  
But I can’t speak and I can’t sing  
I can only strum this guitar string.”

As Link concluded the lyric, Rhett looked up, tears in his eyes, and he played a final chord and set the guitar back on its stand. He walked to Link, who was gazing downward, and tipped up his chin with a finger. 

“What is this, Link?”

But Link could only shrug. “I don’t know.”

Rhett leaned in and gently kissed the corner of Link’s mouth, and then his neck, and his shoulder blades. He moved downward, going to his knees, and his lips traced a path from Link’s belly button to the top of his waistband, while his fingers danced down the smooth skin of Link’s abdomen.

Link let out a groan. He yearned for this. Not the lustful kind of encounter he had first had with Rhett, but something slow, romantic, meaningful. Rhett began to undo the button of Link’s pants, but that voice in Link’s head began to yell its warnings, and Link found himself twisting away. 

Rhett slumped. “Did I do something wrong?”

Link bit his lip and shook his head. “No. It’s not you.”

“You were eager enough last night. Or was that just the booze?” Rhett’s tone wasn’t bitter. It was sad, as if this was what he had expected all along.

“No, Rhett. I … I want this. But …”

“But what, Link?” Rhett stood, but then retreated to the couch. “I thought there was something between us. I don’t know what it is, but it feels right to you, doesn’t it? Because it does to me.”

Link let out a heavy sigh. He wanted this, desperately. Even though it was too fast and didn’t make sense. Even though Rhett was his boss. All he had ever wanted was someone to make him feel special. And in these small gestures, in breakfast, in this song, in the ways his lips were worshipping Link’s body, Rhett was doing that.

Link sat, folding one leg under him on the couch and letting the other dangle. He faced Rhett, who mirrored his posture. 

“That’s why,” Link said simply.

“I don’t understand.”

“It does feel right to me. That’s why it’s so hard.”

Rhett’s nose wrinkled and his mouth quirked to the side. “But that doesn’t make sense.” Rhett leaned forward and took Link’s hands in his own. “If it feels right, it should be easy. This could be the easiest thing in the world.”

Link shook his head. He didn’t have Rhett’s optimism. He couldn’t. “Only until it’s over.”

Rhett stared at him. “Why would you say that?”

“Because everything ends. Sure, it’s great while it lasts, but it always ends. Everyone I’ve ever been with eventually figures out that there’s someone better out there, and they leave me. I can’t risk that again.”

Link felt the back of his throat burning as he fought his tears. He would not cry in front of Rhett. 

Rhett rubbed his thumbs over the top of Link’s hands. “But what if there’s a chance that won’t happen? Isn’t it worth the risk to find out if we can be happy?”

Link felt a shake begin in his hands, but Rhett steadied him, holding tightly, not letting him fall apart. “I don’t know, Rhett. I mean, how would this even work? We just met, and you’re my boss, and we barely know each other.”

“Then tell me. Tell me why you’re so scared. Who hurt you enough that you won’t let anyone in?”

“Everyone.”

Rhett stared him down. He wasn’t going to let Link get away with that kind of vague answer. And Link couldn’t bear those steely eyes boring into him. He would have to tell him something.

He took his hands from Rhett and turned away from him slightly, his eyes aimed into the distance of the large room. “I was always kind of the weird kid, I guess. I didn’t really have a lot of friends. Other kids had best friends, you know? Somebody they were always with. Somebody they could count on. I played with the other kids, but when it came down to it, I was just there. I wasn’t part of anything. I was just … there.”

He paused. Rhett leaned in toward him again, silently urging him to continue, but didn’t touch him. Link was grateful for that. He might not have been able to continue otherwise.

“My senior year of high school, right before graduation, I came out to my parents.” Link’s voice started to crack. “They completely disowned me. Told me if that was the life I chose, then I would have to do it on my own. They refused to help me with college. So instead of going to the school I wanted to go, I had to go somewhere I could afford. Except I still couldn’t afford it, so I’m in more debt that you can imagine.”

“And you had … boyfriends?”

Link nodded. “I thought I did, anyway. But nothing lasted. As soon as I got attached, they’d move on. I was always just somebody’s cheap thrill. Somebody to just pass the time.”

“That’s what I did to you.” It wasn’t a question. “I used you.”

“Maybe,” Link replied. He certainly had felt like that. But last night had showed him that Rhett hadn’t intentionally hurt him. Rhett was hurting, too. And maybe that’s why Link had responded the way he had. For those fleeting moments, he tried to show Rhett what love was. Tried to let Rhett feel something good and honest. And to let himself feel it, too. But in the light of day, it wasn’t so easy.

A quiet settled between them. There was more, more details, more stories, but they all told the same story. After having his heart broken enough times, Link focused on school, and then on finding a job, and eventually gave up on the idea of love altogether. 

Rhett fidgeted, crossing and recrossing his legs, and finally standing. He walked across the room and gazed out the window for a few minutes before walking back and sitting on the coffee table in front of Link. But Link refused to meet his eyes, staring instead at Rhett’s bare knees while Rhett began to talk.

“I’ve always thought if I told anyone, I’d lose everything. I made sure to be seen with women so no one would suspect, and they always wanted more than just dinner. But I couldn’t do it. I let them … you know, but I wouldn’t sleep with them. If it was just oral, I could close my eyes and pretend it was different, but I knew if I went further, I wouldn’t be able to. But people don’t know that. They think I’m a womanizer. There are whole articles about me being the most eligible bachelor that no one can land. And someone that reinforces the idea that I’m a competent business man. An aggressive negotiator who gets what he wants and doesn’t give in.”

Rhett put his head in his hands. “That’s not who I am, Link. It’s who I pretend to be. And I don’t want to anymore.”

Now it was Link who took Rhett’s hands. “You don’t have to be,” he said. “You can be you. I’ve seen bits and pieces of the man you really are. You might even find that people like you better as yourself.”

“I know,” Rhett said, and they locked eyes. “But I want you by my side if I do that.”

“Rhett, you’re my boss. I can’t …”

“What if I wasn’t? You can be my partner. We’ll run the business together. It’ll be …” But his words trailed off. 

Rhett settled back into the couch, leaning onto the armrest and stretching his legs out. “Hell, Link. I don’t even know if the company is what I want anymore.”

“What do you want?”

“Right now? Just you.”

Rhett stretched his arms out, and Link laid back on Rhett’s bare chest, letting the big man put his arms around him and hold him tight. One thing Rhett had correct: this felt right. For as different as they seemed, here they both were, struggling to find the love they both needed. And here it was, staring them both in the face, just waiting to be embraced. 

Link curled onto his side, letting Rhett’s body cradle him. He felt small, like a child in need of protection. But not from Rhett. And Link wasn’t the only one taking a risk in this. Rhett had never let anyone in at all. He could be hurt just as easily. 

But how did they even get to this place? Maybe what was between them had started out as just a sexual attraction, but this was more than just sex. Could anyone fall in love so quickly? Link had started to believe that love was nothing but a fantasy, but maybe he was wrong.

Maybe, just maybe, he could live in this moment, whatever it was, for as long as it lasted. Maybe it would be worth it.

“I loved your lyrics,” Rhett whispered softly in Link’s ear. “That song is everything I’ve ever felt. All the pain I’ve let build up. But I never had the words for it.”

Link sat up straight. The idea had popped into his head, fully formed. Never had anything seemed so clear. 

“Rhett, I know what we’re going to do.” He turned and kissed Rhett hard, pulling him into a sitting position before telling him his plan.


	13. Epilogue: Six Months Later

Epilogue: 6 Months Later

Link stepped onto the porch of the cabin carrying two mugs of hot coffee. He set the mugs down on the table next to Rhett, who sat strumming his guitar as the sun came up over the trees. 

“Thanks, baby,” Rhett said.

Link said nothing, but kissed Rhett on the cheek before settling down into the other chair. 

Rhett played a tune that danced happily across the porch. It was something new he was working on. Link would write lyrics later. And maybe he would write something about the sun shining through the trees like golden fingers. Maybe. Rhett never knew exactly how a melody would resonate with Link, but his lyrics and Rhett’s tune always melded perfectly. 

And being out here in the woods, one of them was always inspired by something. Sometimes by each other. And those songs were always the best.

When Link had proposed quitting the business world and pursuing music, the world seemed to fall into place for Rhett. It wasn’t something he had ever imagined doing, but he had never been happier than when he was playing the guitar. Until he met Link, that is. Doing those two things together would be heaven.

Once things settled down at work, Rhett resigned and sold his shares in the company, leaving him financially comfortable. It had been Link who found the cabin, built in the middle of nowhere, just on the shores of a lake. More quickly than anyone should, they moved in together, with no concern whatsoever that it was Rhett’s money that allowed it. Somehow, that didn’t seem to matter. If it had mattered, Link didn’t let on. But once they had both let their guard down with each other, there were no more secrets. If they could trust each other with their most vulnerable selves, they could trust each other with anything.

Rhett put the guitar down and picked up his coffee. Both men sipped their drinks, and before too long, their hands were intertwined. 

“We recording today?” Link asked. 

“If you can come with some lyrics for that,” Rhett said, knowing Link would have something shortly. 

Link made a “hmmm” noise. “Maybe something about the sun reflecting in your eyes.”

“Maybe,” Rhett said, blushing. If Link wanted to write about his eyes, he wasn’t going to stop him.

They sat for a long time in comfortable silence, until the sun was fully above them and the mugs were empty. The air began to warm. Summer was upon them. Maybe Rhett could get Link to go swimming later that afternoon if they finished recording in time. Rhett could always focus better if there was a reward coming. 

“You ready?” Link asked, standing. 

Rhett stood as well and took a step, placing himself toe to toe with Link. “I’m going to have to delay a bit,” he said, grinning.

“Oh?”

“Yeah.”

Rhett placed his hands on Link’s waist and pulled him close. He kissed Link, first just lips, and then tongues, until he knew Link would acquiesce. He knew that moment had come when Link reached up and wrapped his arms around Rhett’s neck.

Rhett hoisted Link up, wrapping his legs around his waist. Link buried his hands in Rhett’s hair, deepening their kiss. 

“I guess we can wait just a little longer to get to work,” Link said breathlessly when he finally broke away.

“Just a little longer,” Rhett agreed. 

Rhett carried Link inside. They could have just stayed put; there was no one for miles. But Rhett knew what Link wanted. What they both wanted. They wanted to be together in the bed they shared, so they could go slowly, leisurely, tease each other, and adore each other. Sure, they had the occasional quick and furious session, but it was the deeper moments that they both cherished. The moments when they knew it was love at work.

Ever so gently, Rhett laid Link down and settled in beside him. He laid a hand on Link’s cheek as they faced each other. “Thank you,” he whispered.

“For what?”

“For making this happen. For coming into my life at all. For loving me.”

Link blushed now, and responded by kissing Rhett’s forehead. And then his cheek, and his neck, and the soft spot just above the neck of his t-shirt. Rhett moaned and let his head roll back.

“I love you, Rhett.”

“Not as much as I love you, Link.”

Rhett returned the kisses, trailing down from Link’s chin, to his Adam’s apple, to his collar bone. Link licked his lips and pressed his body into Rhett’s in an impatient yearn. Rhett pulled Link’s leg over his body until Link straddled him. He stared up into his lover’s blue eyes and knew that even if this all fell apart someday, it would have been worth it.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading my work! I appreciate your feedback. If you enjoyed The Business Man and the Boy, please share with your friends. I'm on tumblr at https://www.tumblr.com/blog/whilhelminaprince


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